Who made the BIGGEST influence in your life?

Some would readily say that their peers made the biggest influence in their lives. Yet others would venture to share that it was a special teacher. I can see those two groups as viable options, but if I'm completely honest with myself I would have to say my parents. Yep! My parents made the biggest influence in my life. Both my parents are some of the bravest people I've ever met. They migrated to the USA with a family, which included three kids. To make it just a little more adventurous, the third kid was a three month old baby! So here we have a family of five, no language acquisition, less than a couple week's worth of financial means in a brand new land. Through perseverance, hard work, determination, and family unity we were able to live through all of that. My arrival to this country is shared in my first children's book, "3,585 Miles to be an American Girl". I'm super excited awaiting its release! I communicated with the illustrator over the weekend and I should have some additional final illustrations soon. If all continues to go as planned, I should all of the illustrations completed by the end of October and the published book by December. I will be hosting a Publishing Party (I just heard that's a thing). My friends have some awesome ideas and I think I might be getting a little bit excited. So stay tuned as I go over the ideas and ask for your input on what I should have.